arXiv subjects

L. M. Fraile

Publications and source records attributed to L. M. Fraile.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

arXiv2021

Unveiling the Two-Proton Halo Character of 17Ne: Exclusive Measurement of Quasi-free Proton-Knockout Reactions

The proton drip-line nucleus 17Ne is investigated experimentally in order to determine its two-proton halo character. A fully exclusive measurement of the 17Ne(p,2p)16F->15O+p quasi-free one-proton knockout reaction has been performed at GSI at around 500 MeV/nucleon beam energy. All particles resulting from the scattering process have been detected. The relevant reconstructed quantities are the angles of the two protons scattered in quasi-elastic kinematics, the decay of 16F into 15O (including gamma decays from excited states) and a proton, as well as the 15O+p relative-energy spectrum and the 16F momentum distributions. The latter two quantities allow an independent and consistent determination of the ratio of l=0 and l=2 motion of the valence protons in 17Ne. With a resulting relatively small l=0 component of only around 35(3)%, it is concluded that 17Ne exhibits a rather modest halo character only. The quantitative agreement of the two values deduced from the energy spectrum and the momentum distributions supports the theoretical treatment of the calculation of momentum distributions after quasi-free knockout reactions at high energies by taking into account distortions based on the Glauber theory. Moreover, the experimental data allow the separation of valence-proton knockout and knockout from the 15O core. The latter process contributes with 11.8(3.1) mb around 40% to the total proton-knockout cross section of 30.3(2.3) mb, which explains previously reported contradicting conclusions derived from inclusive cross sections.

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arXiv2020

On the $β$-decay of $^{186}$Hg

The Gamow-Teller strength distribution of the decay of $^{186}$Hg into $^{186}$Au has been determined for the first time using the total absorption gamma spectroscopy technique and has been compared with theoretical QRPA calculations using the SLy4 Skyrme force. The measured Gamow-Teller strength distribution and the half-life are described by mixing oblate and prolate configurations independently in the parent and daughter nuclei. The best description of the experimental beta strength is obtained with dominantly prolate components for both parent $^{186}$Hg and daughter $^{186}$Au. The approach also allowed us to determine an upper limit of the oblate component in the parent state. The complexity of the analysis required the development of a new approach in the analysis of the X-ray gated total absorption spectrum.

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arXiv2020

Probing the Z = 6 spin-orbit shell gap with (p,2p) quasi-free scattering reactions

The evolution of the traditional nuclear magic numbers away from the valley of stability is an active field of research. Experimental efforts focus on providing key spectroscopic information that will shed light into the structure of exotic nuclei and understanding the driving mechanism behind the shell evolution. In this work, we investigate the Z = 6 spin-orbit shell gap towards the neutron dripline. To do so, we employed $^{A}$N(p,2p)$^{A-1}$C quasi-free scattering reactions to measure the proton component of the 2$^+_1$ state of $^{16,18,20}$C. The experimental findings support the notion of a moderate reduction of the proton 1p$_{1/2}$-1p$_{3/2}$ spin-orbit splitting, at variance to recent claims for a prevalent Z = 6 magic number towards the neutron dripline.

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arXiv2020

Decay studies of the long-lived states in $^{186}$Tl

Decay spectroscopy of the long-lived states in $^{186}$Tl has been performed at the ISOLDE Decay Station at ISOLDE, CERN. The $α$ decay from the low-spin $(2^-)$ state in $^{186}$Tl was observed for the first time and a half-life of $3.4^{+0.5}_{-0.4}$ s was determined. Based on the $α$-decay energy, the relative positions of the long-lived states were fixed, with the $(2^-)$ state as the ground state, the $7^{(+)}$ state at 77(56)~keV and the $10^{(-)}$ state at 451(56) keV. The level scheme of the internal decay of the $^{186}$Tl($10^{(-)}$) state ($T_{1/2} = 3.40(9)$ s), which was known to decay solely through emission of 374 keV $γ$-ray transition, was extended and a lower-limit for the $β$-decay branching $b_β> 5.9(3)\%$ was determined. The extracted retardation factors for the $γ$ decay of the $10^{(-)}$ state were compared to the available data in neighboring odd-odd thallium isotopes indicating the importance of the $πd_{3/2}$ shell in the isomeric decay and significant structure differences between $^{184}$Tl and $^{186}$Tl.

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arXiv2020

Detailed spectroscopy of doubly magic $^{132}$Sn

The structure of the doubly magic $^{132}_{50}$Sn$_{82}$ has been investigated at the ISOLDE facility at CERN, populated both by the $β^-$decay of $^{132}$In and $β^-$-delayed neutron emission of $^{133}$In. The level scheme of $^{132}$Sn is greatly expanded with the addition of 68 $γ$-transitions and 17 levels observed for the first time in the $β$ decay. The information on the excited structure is completed by new $γ$-transitions and states populated in the $β$-n decay of $^{133}$In. Improved delayed neutron emission probabilities are obtained both for $^{132}$In and $^{133}$In. Level lifetimes are measured via the Advanced Time-Delayed $βγγ$(t) fast-timing method. An interpretation of the level structure is given based on the experimental findings and the particle-hole configurations arising from core excitations both from the \textit{N} = 82 and \textit{Z} = 50 shells, leading to positive and negative parity particle-hole multiplets. The experimental information provides new data to challenge the theoretical description of $^{132}$Sn.

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arXiv2020

Fast-timing study of $^{81}$Ga from the $β$ decay of $^{81}$Zn

The $β^{-}$ decay of $^{81}$Zn to the neutron magic $N=50$ nucleus $^{81}$Ga, with only three valence protons with respect to $^{78}$Ni, was investigated. The study was performed at the ISOLDE facility at CERN by means of $γ$ spectroscopy. The $^{81}$Zn half-life was determined to be $T_{1/2}=290(4)$ ms while the $β$-delayed neutron emission probability was measured as $P_n=23(4)\%$. The analysis of the $β$-gated $γ$-ray singles and $γ$-$γ$ coincidences from the decay of $^{81}$Zn provides 47 new levels and 70 new transitions in $^{81}$Ga. The $β^-$$n$ decay of $^{81}$Zn was observed and a new decay scheme into the odd-odd $^{80}$Ga nucleus was established. The half-lives of the first and second excited states of $^{81}$Ga were measured via the fast-timing method using LaBr$_3$(Ce) detectors. The level scheme and transition rates are compared to large-scale shell-model calculations. The low-lying structure of $^{81}$Ga is interpreted in terms of the coupling of the three valence protons outside the doubly-magic $^{78}$Ni core.

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arXiv2020

Neutron flux and spectrum in the Dresden Felsenkeller underground facility studied by moderated $^3$He counters

Ambient neutrons may cause significant background for underground experiments. Therefore, it is necessary to investigate their flux and energy spectrum in order to devise a proper shielding. Here, two sets of altogether ten moderated $^3$He neutron counters are used for a detailed study of the ambient neutron background in tunnel IV of the Felsenkeller facility, underground below 45 meters of rock in Dresden/Germany. One of the moderators is lined with lead and thus sensitive to neutrons of energies higher than 10 MeV. For each $^3$He counter-moderator assembly, the energy dependent neutron sensitivity was calculated with the FLUKA code. The count rates of the ten detectors were then fitted with the MAXED and GRAVEL packages. As a result, both the neutron energy spectrum from 10$^{-9}$ MeV to 300 MeV and the flux integrated over the same energy range were determined experimentally. The data show that at a given depth, both the flux and the spectrum vary significantly depending on local conditions. Energy integrated fluxes of $(0.61 \pm 0.05)$, $(1.96 \pm 0.15)$, and $(4.6 \pm 0.4) \times 10^{-4}$ cm$^{-2}$ s$^{-1}$, respectively, are measured for three sites within Felsenkeller tunnel IV which have similar muon flux but different shielding wall configurations. The integrated neutron flux data and the obtained spectra for the three sites are matched reasonably well by FLUKA Monte Carlo calculations that are based on the known muon flux and composition of the measurement room walls.

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arXiv2020

Determination of Beta Decay Ground State Feeding of Nuclei of Importance for Reactor Applications

In $β$-decay studies the determination of the decay probability to the ground state of the daughter nucleus often suffers from large systematic errors. The difficulty of the measurement is related to the absence of associated delayed $γ$-ray emission. In this work we revisit the $4πγ-β$ method proposed by Greenwood and collaborators in the 1990s, which has the potential to overcome some of the experimental difficulties. Our interest is driven by the need to determine accurately the $β$-intensity distributions of fission products that contribute significantly to the reactor decay heat and to the antineutrinos emitted by reactors. A number of such decays have large ground state branches. The method is relevant for nuclear structure studies as well. Pertinent formulae are revised and extended to the special case of $β$-delayed neutron emitters, and the robustness of the method is demonstrated with synthetic data. We apply it to a number of measured decays that serve as test cases and discuss the features of the method. Finally, we obtain ground state feeding intensities with reduced uncertainty for four relevant decays that will allow future improvements in antineutrino spectrum and decay heat calculations using the summation method.

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arXiv2020

Search for beta-delayed proton emission from $^{11}$Be

We report on an attempt to reproduce the observation of $β^-$-delayed proton emission from $^{11}$Be through detection of the final state nucleus $^{10}$Be with accelerator mass spectrometry. Twelve samples were collected at the ISOLDE facility at CERN at different separator settings, allowing tests of different sources of contamination to be carried out. The observed amounts of $^{10}$Be per collected $^{11}$Be rule out several contamination sources, but do not agree internally. Formation of BeH molecular ions in the ion source may explain our data, in which case an upper limit of the $β$p branching ratio of $2.2 \cdot 10^{-6}$ can be derived.

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arXiv2019

Normal and intruder configurations in $^{34}$Si populated in the $β^-$ decay of $^{34}$Mg and $^{34}$Al

The structure of $^{34}$Si was studied through $γ$ spectroscopy separately in the $β^-$ decays of $^{34}$Mg and $^{34}$Al at the ISOLDE facility of CERN. Different configurations in $^{34}$Si were populated independently from the two recently identified $β$-decaying states in $^{34}$Al having spin-parity assignments $J^π= 4^-$ dominated by the normal configuration $π(d_{5/2})^{-1} \otimes ν(f_{7/2})$ and $J^π= 1^+$ by the intruder configuration $π(d_{5/2})^{-1} \otimes ν(d_{3/2})^{-1}(f_{7/2})^{2}$. The paper reports on spectroscopic properties of $^{34}$Si such as an extended level scheme, spin and parity assignments based on log($ft$) values and $γ$-ray branching ratios, absolute $β$ feeding intensities and neutron emission probabilities. A total of 11 newly identified levels and 26 transitions were added to the previously known level scheme of $^{34}$Si. Large scale shell-model calculations using the {\sc sdpf-u-mix} interaction, able to treat higher order intruder configurations, are compared with the new results and conclusions are drawn concerning the predictive power of {\sc sdpf-u-mix}, the $N=20$ shell gap, the level of mixing between normal and intruder configurations for the 0$_1^+$, 0$_2^+$ and 2$_1^+$ states and the absence of triaxial deformation in $^{34}$Si.

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arXiv2019

Total absorption $γ$-ray spectroscopy of the $β$-delayed neutron emitters $^{137}$I and $^{95}$Rb

The decays of the $β$-delayed neutron emitters $^{137}$I and $^{95}$Rb have been studied with the total absorption $γ$-ray spectroscopy technique. The purity of the beams provided by the JYFLTRAP Penning trap at the ion guide isotope separator on-line facility in Jyväskylä allowed us to carry out a campaign of isotopically pure measurements with the decay total absorption $γ$-ray spectrometer, a segmented detector composed of eighteen NaI(Tl) modules. The contamination coming from the interaction of neutrons with the spectrometer has been carefully studied, and we have tested the use of time differences between prompt $γ$-rays and delayed neutron interactions to eliminate this source of contamination. Due to the sensitivity of our spectrometer, we have found a significant amount of $β$-intensity to states above the neutron separation energy that de-excite by $γ$-rays, comparable to the neutron emission probability. The competition between $γ$ de-excitation and neutron emission has been compared with Hauser-Feshbach calculations, and it can be understood as a nuclear structure effect. In addition, we have studied the impact of the $β$-intensity distributions determined in this work on reactor decay heat and reactor antineutrino spectrum summation calculations. The robustness of our results is demonstrated by a thorough study of uncertainties, and with the reproduction of the spectra of the individual modules and the module-multiplicity gated spectra. This work represents the state-of-the-art of our analysis methodology for segmented total absorption spectrometers.

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arXiv2019

Study of multi-neutron emission in the $β$-decay of $^{11}$Li

The kinematics of two-neutron emission following the $β$-decay of $^{11}$Li was investigated for the first time by detecting the two neutrons in coincidence and by measuring their angle and energy. An array of liquid-scintillator neutron detectors was used to reject cosmic-ray and $γ$-ray backgrounds by pulse-shape discrimination. Cross-talk events in which two detectors are fired by a single neutron were rejected using a filter tested on the $β$-1n emitter $^9$Li. A large cross-talk rejection rate is obtained ($> 95 \%$) over most of the energy range of interest. Application to $^{11}$Li data leads to a significant number of events interpreted as $β$-2n decay. A discrete neutron line at $\approx$ 2 MeV indicates sequential two-neutron emission, possibly from the unbound state at 10.6 MeV excitation energy in $^{11}$Be.

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arXiv2019

An alternative approach to populate and study the $^{229}$Th nuclear clock isomer

A new approach to observe the radiative decay of the $^{229}$Th nuclear isomer, and to determine its energy and radiative lifetime, is presented. Situated at a uniquely low excitation energy, this nuclear state might be a key ingredient for the development of a nuclear clock, a nuclear laser and the search for time variations of the fundamental constants. The isomer's $γ$ decay towards the ground state will be studied with a high-resolution VUV spectrometer after its production by the $β$ decay of $^{229}$Ac. The novel production method presents a number of advantages asserting its competitive nature with respect to the commonly used $^{233}$U $α$-decay recoil source. In this paper, a feasibility analysis of this new concept, and an experimental investigation of its key ingredients, using a pure $^{229}$Ac ion beam produced at the ISOLDE radioactive beam facility, is reported.

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arXiv2019

Total absorption $γ$-ray spectroscopy of niobium isomers

The $β$ intensity distributions of the decays of $^{100\text{gs},100\text{m}}$Nb and $^{102\text{gs},102\text{m}}$Nb have been determined using the Total Absorption $γ$-Ray Spectroscopy technique. The JYFLTRAP double Penning trap system was employed to disentangle the isomeric states involved, lying very close in energy, in a campaign of challenging measurements performed with the Decay Total Absorption $γ$-ray Spectrometer at the Ion Guide Isotope Separator On-Line facility in Jyväskylä. The low-spin isomeric state of each niobium case was populated through the decay of the zirconium parent, that was treated as a contaminant. We have applied a method to extract this contamination, and additionally we have obtained $β$ intensity distributions for these zirconium decays. The $β$-strength distributions evaluated with these results were compared with calculations in quasiparticle random-phase approximation, suggesting a prolate configuration for the ground states of $^{100,102}$Zr. The footprint of the Pandemonium effect was found when comparing our results for the analyses of the niobium isotopes with previous decay data. The $β$-intensities of the decay of $^{102\text{m}}$Nb were obtained for the first time. A careful evaluation of the uncertainties was carried out, and the consistency of our results was validated taking advantage of the segmentation of our spectrometer. The final results were used as input in reactor summation calculations. A large impact on antineutrino spectrum calculations was already reported and here we detail the significant impact on decay heat calculations.

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arXiv2018

$β^-$ decay study of the $^{66}$Mn - $^{66}$Fe - $^{66}$Co - $^{66}$Ni chain

Background: Shell evolution can impact the structure of the nuclei and lead to effects such as shape coexistence. The nuclei around $^{68}$Ni represent an excellent study case, however, spectroscopic information of the neutron-rich, $Z<28$ nuclei is limited. Purpose: The goal is to measure $γ$-ray transitions in $^{66}$Fe, $^{66}$Co and $^{66}$Ni populated in the $β^-$ decay of $^{66}$Mn, to determine absolute $β$-feedings and relative $γ$-decay probabilities and to compare the results with Monte Carlo Shell Model calculations in order to study the influence of the relevant single neutron and proton orbitals occupancies around $Z=28$ and $N=40$. Method: The low-energy structures of $^{65,66}$Fe, $^{66}$Co and $^{66}$Ni were studied in the $β^-$ decay of $^{66}$Mn produced at ISOLDE, CERN. The beam was purified by means of laser resonance ionization and mass separation. The $β$ and $γ$ events detected by three plastic scintillators and two MiniBall cluster germanium detectors, respectively, were correlated in time to build the low-energy excitation schemes and to determine the $β$-decay half-lives of the nuclei. Results: The relative small $β$-decay ground state feeding of $^{66}$Fe obtained in this work is at variant to the earlier studies. Spin and parity $1^+$ was assigned to the $^{66}$Co ground state based on the strong ground state feeding in the decay of $^{66}$Fe as well as in the decay of $^{66}$Co. Experimental log(ft) values, $γ$-ray deexcitation patterns and energies of excited states were compared to Monte Carlo Shell Model calculations. Based on this comparison, spin and parity assignments for the selected number of low-lying states in the $^{66}$Mn to $^{66}$Ni chain were proposed. Conclusions: The $β$-decay chain starting $^{66}$Mn towards $^{66}$Ni, crossing $N=40$, evolves from deformed nuclei to sphericity...

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arXiv2018

First Accurate Normalization of the $β$-delayed $α$ Decay of $^{16}$N and Implications for the $^{12}$C$(α,γ)^{16}$O Astrophysical Reaction Rate

The $^{12}\text{C}(α,γ){}^{16}\text{O}$ reaction plays a central role in astrophysics, but its cross section at energies relevant for astrophysical applications is only poorly constrained by laboratory data. The reduced $α$ width, $γ_{11}$, of the bound $1^-$ level in $^{16}$O is particularly important to determine the cross section. The magnitude of $γ_{11}$ is determined via sub-Coulomb $α$-transfer reactions or the $β$-delayed $α$ decay of $^{16}$N, but the latter approach is presently hampered by the lack of sufficiently precise data on the $β$-decay branching ratios. Here we report improved branching ratios for the bound $1^-$ level [$b_{β,11} = (5.02\pm 0.10)\times 10^{-2}$] and for $β$-delayed $α$ emission [$b_{βα} = (1.59\pm 0.06)\times 10^{-5}$]. Our value for $b_{βα}$ is 33% larger than previously held, leading to a substantial increase in $γ_{11}$. Our revised value for $γ_{11}$ is in good agreement with the value obtained in $α$-transfer studies and the weighted average of the two gives a robust and precise determination of $γ_{11}$, which provides significantly improved constraints on the $^{12}$C$(α,γ)$ cross section in the energy range relevant to hydrostatic He burning.

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arXiv2018

Characterization and performance of the DTAS detector

DTAS is a segmented total absorption γ-ray spectrometer developed for the DESPEC experiment at FAIR. It is composed of up to eighteen NaI(Tl) crystals. In this work we study the performance of this detector with laboratory sources and also under real experimental conditions. We present a procedure to reconstruct offline the sum of the energy deposited in all the crystals of the spectrometer, which is complicated by the effect of NaI(Tl) light-yield non-proportionality. The use of a system to correct for time variations of the gain in individual detector modules, based on a light pulse generator, is demonstrated. We describe also an event-based method to evaluate the summing-pileup electronic distortion in segmented spectrometers. All of this allows a careful characterization of the detector with Monte Carlo simulations that is needed to calculate the response function for the analysis of total absorption γ-ray spectroscopy data. Special attention was paid to the interaction of neutrons with the spectrometer, since they are a source of contamination in studies of \b{eta}-delayed neutron emitting nuclei.

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arXiv2018

Strong neutron pairing in core+4n nuclei

The emission of neutron pairs from the neutron-rich $N\!=\!12$ isotones $^{18}$C and $^{20}$O has been studied by high-energy nucleon knockout from $^{19}$N and $^{21}$O secondary beams, populating unbound states of the two isotones up to 15~MeV above their two-neutron emission thresholds. The analysis of triple fragment-$n$-$n$ correlations shows that the decay $^{19}$N$(-1p)^{18}$C$^*\!\rightarrow^{16}$C+$n$+$n$ is clearly dominated by direct pair emission. The two-neutron correlation strength, the largest ever observed, suggests the predominance of a $^{14}$C core surrounded by four valence neutrons arranged in strongly correlated pairs. On the other hand, a significant competition of a sequential branch is found in the decay $^{21}$O$(-1n)^{20}$O$^*\!\rightarrow^{18}$O+$n$+$n$, attributed to its formation through the knockout of a deeply-bound neutron that breaks the $^{16}$O core and reduces the number of pairs.

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